Getting an Ozone Machine
- Thread starter bigleo48
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Pro-Techt
Member
BigLeo - How much are you planning on charging for an ozone treatment?
bigleo48
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That was kinda my next question....what do you guys charge? The running rate seems to be between $50 and $100 depending on the size of the vehicle. Some have an interior clean as a prerequisite. That sure pays for the $600 machine in a hurry!
What are the dos and don'ts? I know it will kill plants and it's hard on real rubber. But what about leather and other parts in the cabin?
BigLeo
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Pro-Techt
Member
I'd say that $50-$100 is a good starting point for just the ozone treatment only. And yes, depending on the odor and the root of it, a complete cleaning of the interior must be done 1st. I usually ran my machines in each vehicle for 30-60 minutes with the AC turned up full blast and then left it run overnight. Make sure to air the vehicle out after using the machine because the smell is super strong. It will make your eyes burn for sure. I'd say my sucess rate was about 75%. The problems I usually encountered were with strong pet odors. They never seem to get out of there.
Eric H
Well-known member
Don't let anyone occupy the vehicle until is is thoroughly aired out. Over exposure to ozone can cause a blood condition called ITP (Idiopathic thromburic Purpura). I had it as child and while not life threatening the side effects can be.
I remember reading an article in one of the trade mags years ago where a detailer took a nap in a car while it was getting an ozone treatment and the guy ended up with it.
I remember reading an article in one of the trade mags years ago where a detailer took a nap in a car while it was getting an ozone treatment and the guy ended up with it.
Jim Caudill
Self Serve Operator
I have rented and used Ozone generators for mold treatment in houses and have done a fair amount of research on them. Ozone is the O3 form of Oxygen and is very unstable - meaning it is highly reactive and will decay down to O2 reasonably quickly (couple of hours or so). Ozone is actually odorless and colorless, but the process to generate the Ozone has a distinctive odor (if done by the arc discharge method). All you should have to do is wait a couple of hours before entering the vehicle for a sustained period, you could get in and drive the vehicle out of the bay or some such (short term exposure) without any worry.
I was doing one room at a time and used the models that produce around 4000 mg/hr. You really need a high concentration in order to do serious work. Small models may help short term odor elimination, but to really "get after it" you want to go for a very high concentration. My brother had a bout of Legionairres disease, and I took his truck to treat it. I used one of the big units and let it run overnight. I hooked a battery charger up and ran the fan in the recirculate mode for a couple of hours also. I was wanting to get at anything that might be in the evaporator coil.
I was doing one room at a time and used the models that produce around 4000 mg/hr. You really need a high concentration in order to do serious work. Small models may help short term odor elimination, but to really "get after it" you want to go for a very high concentration. My brother had a bout of Legionairres disease, and I took his truck to treat it. I used one of the big units and let it run overnight. I hooked a battery charger up and ran the fan in the recirculate mode for a couple of hours also. I was wanting to get at anything that might be in the evaporator coil.
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smokun
Consultant - Rainmaker
Some More Advice
I've spent a lot of time (several decades) investigating, testing, and working with ozone as applied to detailing... and have published information that should help in your choice of units and use of the machine in odor removal and sanitizing automobile interiors.
An ozone machine should be part of a detailer's arsenal
for interior cleaning, along with an extraction shampooer. Finding the source of the malodor is the first step, and it usually requires a clean-up. Hence, the extraction shampooer.
Choosing an ozone generator is best done by evaluating the amount (number of grams) of ozone generated because "more" is better than less. Reason: The kill efficacy is quicker, and time is money. So is convenience. The units used to get odors out of hotel rooms take too long. Hunt for a powerful unit, and accept that there is cleaning required to keep the ozone unit effective. Whether it's transfer plates or UV tubes, once a film of dirt coats the surface, significantly less ozone is generated.
Once the odor-causing stuff is cleaned up and affected the area is dry, you're ready to sanitize the interior cabin. The engine should be running, and the air conditioner should be on at "max cold"... so the interior air is recirculated through the vents. This cleans he air ducts as well as circulates the ozone throughout the interior cabin. Remember that ozone is a gas that kills, so it must permeate the entire interior. Don't worry about anything oxidizing unless you intend to leave the ozone working for a real long time; like a week.
(continued)
I've spent a lot of time (several decades) investigating, testing, and working with ozone as applied to detailing... and have published information that should help in your choice of units and use of the machine in odor removal and sanitizing automobile interiors.
An ozone machine should be part of a detailer's arsenal
for interior cleaning, along with an extraction shampooer. Finding the source of the malodor is the first step, and it usually requires a clean-up. Hence, the extraction shampooer.Choosing an ozone generator is best done by evaluating the amount (number of grams) of ozone generated because "more" is better than less. Reason: The kill efficacy is quicker, and time is money.
So is convenience. The units used to get odors out of hotel rooms take too long. Hunt for a powerful unit, and accept that there is cleaning required to keep the ozone unit effective. Whether it's transfer plates or UV tubes, once a film of dirt coats the surface, significantly less ozone is generated. Once the odor-causing stuff is cleaned up and affected the area is dry, you're ready to sanitize the interior cabin. The engine should be running, and the air conditioner should be on at "max cold"... so the interior air is recirculated through the vents. This cleans he air ducts as well as circulates the ozone throughout the interior cabin. Remember that ozone is a gas that kills, so it must permeate the entire interior. Don't worry about anything oxidizing unless you intend to leave the ozone working for a real long time; like a week.
(continued)
smokun
Consultant - Rainmaker
Continued advice
Depending on the unit's gram output, the process can take as little as ten-minutes to several hours. Once done, open all the doors and let the interior air out. A fan will hasten the exhaust process, which should be about fifteen-minutes. You'll be able to tell by giving it "the sniff test" afterwards. Don't drive the car until the ozone is exhaused from the interior... or you'll get one hell of a headache, along with eye and throat irritation. Lungs were designed for O2, not O3!
The lingering ozone residual will smell clean & sanitary, like being outside after a spring thunderstorm. It's unmistakable. Ask more... or read any of my published articles in the trade magazine archives. Much of the info has been cherry-picked over the years and used by others too, but it's all good.
Depending on the unit's gram output, the process can take as little as ten-minutes to several hours.
Once done, open all the doors and let the interior air out. A fan will hasten the exhaust process, which should be about fifteen-minutes. You'll be able to tell by giving it "the sniff test" afterwards. Don't drive the car until the ozone is exhaused from the interior... or you'll get one hell of a headache, along with eye and throat irritation. Lungs were designed for O2, not O3! The lingering ozone residual will smell clean & sanitary, like being outside after a spring thunderstorm. It's unmistakable. Ask more... or read any of my published articles in the trade magazine archives. Much of the info has been cherry-picked over the years and used by others too, but it's all good.
JMMUSTANG
car wash owner
Email buda. I think Bud still sells ozone machines. Bud can help you out.
I bought one years ago and it worked out well.
We had a list price of $100.00 plus interior clean charge but if the customer purchased a complete detail (in & out) we would tell them that they could purchase the ozone apllication for only $25.00.
We explained all the benefits to them and that it would take an additional hour or two.
Almost everyone purchased it at that price.
For wholesale accounts (dealers) we told them that it was $75.00 per car on a car by car purchase or $25.00 for every car we did no matter what.
Most agreed for all the cars since it was so cheap.
But you do have to very careful and knowlegable with it.
I bought one years ago and it worked out well.
We had a list price of $100.00 plus interior clean charge but if the customer purchased a complete detail (in & out) we would tell them that they could purchase the ozone apllication for only $25.00.
We explained all the benefits to them and that it would take an additional hour or two.
Almost everyone purchased it at that price.
For wholesale accounts (dealers) we told them that it was $75.00 per car on a car by car purchase or $25.00 for every car we did no matter what.
Most agreed for all the cars since it was so cheap.
But you do have to very careful and knowlegable with it.
Bubbles Galore
Active member
Big,
What unit did you end up going with?
What unit did you end up going with?
